A series of remarkable crystalline compounds [Cu(2)(BTC)(4/3)(H(2)O)(2)](6)[H(n)XM(12)O(40)].(C(4)H(12)N)(2) (X = Si, Ge, P, As; M = W, Mo) were obtained from the simple one-step hydrothermal reaction of copper nitrate, benzentricaboxylate (BTC), and different Keggin polyoxometalates (POMs). In these compounds, the catalytically active Keggin polyanions were alternately arrayed as noncoordinating guests in the cuboctahedral cages of a Cu-BTC-based metal-organic framework (MOF) host matrix. X-ray crystallographic analyses, TG, FT-IR, UV-vis, N(2) adsorption studies, and acid-base titration demonstrated their high stability and toleration for thermal and acid-base conditions. No POM leaching or framework decomposition was observed in our study. The representative acid catalytic performance of a compound containing PW(12) species was assessed through the hydrolysis of esters in excess water, which showed high catalytic activity and can be used repeatedly without activity loss. Moreover, catalytic selectivity, which is dependent on the molecular size of substrates, and substrate accessibility for the pore surface were observed. It is the first time that the well-defined, crystalline, MOF-supported POM compound has behaved as a true heterogeneous acid catalyst. The unique attributes of MOF and well-dispersed level of POMs prohibited the conglomeration and deactivation of POMs, which allowed for the enhancement of their catalytic properties.

A sodalite-type porous metal-organic framework with polyoxometalate templates, H(3)[(Cu(4)Cl)(3)(BTC)(8)](2)[PW(12)O(40)]·(C(4)H(12)N)(6)·3H(2)O (NENU-11; BTC = 1,3,5-benzenetricarboxylate), was obtained by a hydrothermal reaction. As a reasonable candidate for eliminating nerve gas, NENU-11 displays good adsorption behavior for dimethyl methylphosphonate (15.5 molecules per formula unit). In virtue of the catalytic activity of polyoxometalate guests, this nerve gas mimic could be facilely decomposed by a hydrolysis reaction.

Reducing the level of sulfur content in fuel oils has long been desired for environmental reasons. Polyoxometalates (POMs) can act as catalysts to remove sulfur‐containing heterocyclic compounds by the process of oxidative desulfurization under mild conditions. However, one key obstacle to the development of POM‐based catalysts is the poor solubility of POMs in the overall nonpolar environment. We report a novel strategy for the introduction of catalytically active POMs into nonpolar reaction systems by encapsulating the inorganic catalyst within the pores of a metal–organic framework structure in which the organic ligands act as hydrophobic groups. The nanocrystalline catalysts, obtained rapidly and conveniently by both solution and mechanochemical synthesis, showed remarkable activities in catalytic oxidative desulfurization reactions in both a model diesel environment and in real diesel wherein dibenzothiophene was converted rapidly and quantitatively into dibenzothiophene sulfone.

In metabolomics studies and clinical diagnosis, interest is increasing in the rapid analysis of exhaled breath. In vivo breath analysis offers a unique, unobtrusive, non-invasive method of investigating human metabolism. To analyze breath in vivo, we constructed a novel platform of extractive electrospray ionization (EESI) ion trap mass spectrometry (ITMS) using a home-made EESI source coupled to a linear trap quadrupole mass spectrometer. A reference compound (authentic n-octyl amine) was used to evaluate effects of systematically varying selected characteristics of the EESI source on signal intensity. Under the optimized working conditions, metabolic changes of human bodies were in vivo followed by performing rapid breath analysis using the multi-stage EESI-ITMS tandem mass spectrometry platform. For nicotine, a limit of determination was found to be 0.05 fg mL(-1) (S/N = 3, RSD = 5.0 %, n = 10) for nicotine in aerosol standard samples; the dynamic response range was from 0.0155 pg mL(-1) to 155 pg mL(-1). The concentration of nicotine in the exhaled breath of a regular smoker was in vivo determined to be 5.8 pg mL(-1), without any sample pre-treatment. Our results show that EESI-ITMS is a powerful analytical platform to provide high sensitivity, high specificity and high throughput for semi-quantitative analysis of complex samples in life science, particularly for in vivo metabolomics studies.

The Dawson anion P 2W 18O 62 (6-) has been used as a noncoordinating polyoxoanion template for the construction of two metal-organic frameworks, namely, [M 2(bpy) 3(H 2O) 2(ox)][P 2W 18O 62]2(H 2-bpy). nH 2O (M = Co(II), n = 3 ( 1); M = Ni(II), n = 2 ( 2)) (bpy = 4,4'-bipyridine; ox = C 2O 4 (2-)). Single-crystal X-ray analysis reveals that both of the structures exhibit 3D host frameworks constructed from the oxalate-bridged binuclear superoctahedron secondary building units (SBUs) and bpy linkers and the voids of which are occupied by Dawson anions, guest bpy, and water molecules. Magnetic studies reveal that there are antiferromagnetic exchange interactions among the transition-metal centers in compounds 1 and 2. Furthermore, a compound 1-modified carbon paste electrode ( 1-CPE) displays good electrocatalytic activity toward the reduction of nitrite.